The Midnight Sun
by grumpykroc
Summary: The Raven Contract was thought to have died with Uchiha Izuna, their last known summoner. What happens, when a young Naruto stumbles across some birds that yearn to be great again? The result? Read and find out.


The Midnight Sun

By: Grumpykroc

Disclaimer: Naruto and Bleach do not belong to myself, grumpykroc. They are the works and copyright of their respective owners.

Thanks to RisenInfection for his work of being the beta reader for this story.

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The figure stood outside a traditional Japanese sliding door. His long ebony hair was styled in a matter suitable for his noble status, an intricate kenseikan in his locks that highlighted his aristocratic and black ebony eyes. A scarf crafted from priceless silk adorned his neck, and complimented the black battle kimono he wore, along with the white haori that was decorated with dark streaks which eventually united into a pitch black raven with a crimson iris that held three tomoe. An ordinary katana was tucked into his sash, whose only odd feature was the simple open frame that replaced the regular cross guard.

After a single moment, the door slid open, and the figure entered the room and walked in with a confident stride, born not of arrogance, but of countless battles that ended in victory, towards another figure that lay on the ground in a simple futon.

It was only until he was seated on the ground did the sick figure on the ground acknowledge his presence. He turned his head, so that one could see the glazed look in his eyes that spoke of blindness. He spoke in a deep voice that still rang with power even with his crippled state.

"Izuna, I'm glad you were able to get here on such short notice. I am quite happy that you have come, although I hope I did inconvenience you."

"No, it was no trouble. But tell me Madara, why have you called me here so suddenly? What is so important that you have pulled me from the battlefield?"

"Ah, I have wonderful news, Izuna, my brother." Across his weary face, a smirk slowly grew, and his eyes seemed to regain some energy. "I believe, I have found a way to regain my sight! My Mangekyou Sharingan can be reclaimed! And once that was done, I will lead the downfall of the Senju clan, personally!"

The lack of response from the first figure, Izuna, was strange. Although, it was probably shock that he could finally restore himself to his former glory and lead the Uchiha clan to victory over the cursed Senju, the clan of a thousand skills, and proclaim themselves the Ruling Clan of Fire Country, he was that the news would have cracked through even Izuna's emotionless exterior.

"So you intend to steal my eyes, do you brother?" Though poised as a question, both shinobi knew it was anything but. Izuna's eyes broke into his own Mangekyou in the form of three thick bars extending from a crimson iris. His katana soon flew from his sheathe, as he stood up abruptly.

Madara acted quickly, jumping up from the futon with speed, and grabbing hold of the hilt and his brother's hand. All traces of the blind, fragile man before were gone. He was Uchiha Madara, the head of the Uchiha Clan, far surpassing all other shinobi, and only one man would he call his equal, the one standing in front of him this very instant, Uchiha Izuna.

"I admit, I did not expect you to be so knowledgeable about the situation, little brother. Yes, in order to regain my vision, I do need your eyes."

Izuna's face betrayed no emotion except for subtle features, but his Sharingan began to spin wildly, and one could hear a hint of emotion in his voice. "Did you think that I wouldn't suspect when you summoned me? I would never suspect you would steep this low, but I'm lucky that the bodyguards I had guarding you were able to find out your plans."

His brother's face contorted itself into a scowl. "I thought I felt an alien presence in my mansion, but when I sent men out to check, they found nothing. Those ravens of your found new tricks, eh?" The scowl shifted into a small grin. "It matters not, you may be my equal Izuna, but you cannot kill me and the best ninja of our clan."

Now, it was Izuna's turn to smile. "I was wondering who exactly those masked men were." He turned partially, and made a sweeping motion with his hand, the sliding door slid open, showing the mutilated corpses of the aforementioned ninja, and the thick coppery smell of blood permeated the air. "If those were the clans best fighters, then I weep for the future of the Uchiha clan."

"As to be expected from you, Izuna, but I will still gain my eyes today." With that last statement, Madara began to walk forward, slowly but surely making his way towards Izuna.

"So, how will we fight this day Izuna." His tone had changed as if he was discussing something completely mundane. "Your most advanced genjutsu rely on eye contact, so they are now useless, and the weaker ones will be easily dismissed, or will have no effect. If you use ninjutsu you'll attract attention. What will happen if the people were to come across this scene, an injured clan head trying to fend off attacks from his own brother."

"What about yourself? Surely, if I am killed by another's hand, the chance to regain your sharingan would be lost. The only high level ninjutsu you know also rely heavily on the Sharingan, so they are useless to you now. Unless you have a death wish, you would never face my katana with your bare fists, so that leaves one skill we both can use."

"Kenjutsu." Madara began,

"The art of the sword." Izuna finished.

At once, Madara leaped away from his brother, and summoned his own sword with a black blade out of a sealing tattoo on his arm.

"Do not think that being blind will affect the swordsmanship of someone who has mastered silent killing, if anything you are at a disadvantage as I have prepared the battlefield. Prepare yourself. This will not be like any of our spars, little brother.

"I am well aware of the fact."

"Today, one will die, and the other shall rise. Do not hold back, or I will cut you down where you stand."

By one unspoken signal, their blades crossed, and they began their duel to the death.

The battle was long and hard, both men equally matched, until finally Izuna made a fatal error. His brother had left a gaping hole in his defense as he lunged forward, and he was torn with indecision to take the chance or not, for though the man was attempting to kill him, it was still his own brother, his own flesh and blood. And even though he had decided that he would kill him before even entering the room, when the moment presented itself he hesitated, and that was when Madara struck. As quick as a snake, he charged his brother, the swords clashed and created sparks, and in one fluid movement they separated.

Madara began to chuckle darkly, until a ruby spray erupted from his body, and he staggered as a giant slash was torn between his shoulder and side. Struggling, he managed to stay upright, although a hazy fog of pain almost made him collapse, and his sword cluttered to his feet.

On the other side of the room, Izuna stood upright, but he knew it was just a pretence. He was on his last legs, and if the gaping hole in his chest was any indication, the shingami would soon come to covet his soul. "I should not have hesitated." His body soon fell to the hardwood floor, and ebony eyes closed soon after.

The alabaster white that had clouded Madara's eyes soon disappeared. He blinked, and then horrible pain tore at his eyes. He screwed his eyes shut, and just as suddenly as the pain came, it stopped. Grimacing, he opened his eyes just a crack. He then raised his head, and opened his eyes wide, staring at his surroundings with childlike wonder.

'This is beyond what I was expecting, beyond what I was ever hoping.' He stood up, grunting as he did so, staring at the blood that was splattered everywhere, and at the corpse of his brother, capturing the sight in his eyes forever. This made the vision from the previous Mangekyou look like the unfocused vision of a newborn.

He managed to stand upright once again, although he was close to falling down once more. Taking a sigh, he "flexed" his chakra, and was relieved to feel people heading towards his location. Now, all he had to do was wait, and tell his fellow clansmen the grave betrayal Izuna had committed, and how he had barely managed to defeat him, although it seemed that stopping him had miraculously healed his blindness.

Unbeknownst to him, another pair of crimson eyes had watched the exchange, and flew on ebony wings to inform his brethren of the tragedy that had befallen their summoner.

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And end, that's the prologue, Didn't mean for just an intro to be so long, but it happens. The basis for this fic is that I want a Naruto to be like Byakuya Kuchiki from Bleach, and I haven't found a good fic that really captures him, so I decided to try it myself. I don't want to make him super powered and give him overdone skills, but with the help of the Summons, and all the training he puts in, he'll definitely be a force to be reckoned with. Expect a fair amount of genjutsu, as well as special contract only ninjutsu, Kenjutsu definitely, but proficiency, iffy. Can't get better at hand to hand, or hand to blade without sparring partners, human sparring partners. Also, his looks and attitude will definitely be like Kuchiki's, including *gasp* being a brunette. This isn't a crossover, meaning no spiritual energy, and no senbonzakura,...yet.

The Raven/Crow Contract originally came from the Uchiha clan in the form of the summoner Izuna Uchiha, Madara's brother. They left the clan after the death of Izuna, the only summoner at the time.

The name of the story comes from the meaning of Byakuya, which means Midnight Sun.


End file.
